# 161 Scarface (1983)

Scarface is an update of a 1932 film about a Cuban gangster Tony Montana who immigrates to the United States, builds his criminal empire in Miami, but as his power and wealth grow, so does his paranoia. It shows the downside of the American dream in a very raw way.

As I've mentioned in one of my earlier reviews, I like movies that I can learn from. Before watching this movie I didn't know anything about the Mariel boatlift. I found it so interesting that later on I looked it up in Wikipedia. In reality, only 2% of the refugees were classified as serious or violent criminals under U.S. law and denied citizenship on that basis. But anyway, I thank the creators of this film by giving me a history lesson.

It was also interesting to find out that the movie has received mixed reaction. It's hard for me to judge because this whole watching IMDb Top 250 thing has changed me so much that I've become a crime-drama lover. But I agree that this movie is a little bit over the top. I don't know if I would call it a flaw, but I can understand why some people didn't like it for that reason. The only thing I didn't like that much is the ending. Did you see how many times Tony Montana got shot? Still he kept walking around like a Terminator. And I think if he had stayed alive after everything that had happened, it would have made the movie a lot more tragic.

Talking about the acting, I think F. Murray Abraham did a really good job as Omar Suárez. Al Pacino... well you either hate him or love him, but I couldn't think of a better actor for the role. Most of all I liked how the movie showed the change of Montana's attitude towards his woman and his best friend. After all, if money hasn't changed you, you haven't made enough.

Interesting fact: The word "yeyo" is used by Tony Montana (Al Pacino) as a slang word for cocaine. This word was not in the script, and was ad-libbed by Pacino during the first drug deal scene (chainsaw scene), and Brian De Palma liked it enough to keep using it throughout the film. Pacino learned the word while learning the Cuban accent.

Favorite quote: "Every day above ground is a good day".